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S 5033 · 119th CongressIntroduced

Open court records to public requests

Vote
Donor money
Money gap
Summary

What the bill does

This bill would make many court records available to the public under the Freedom of Information Act (FOIA). It covers records like judge performance reports, jury selection forms, and disciplinary actions against judges and lawyers. The bill also requires these records to be in machine-readable format.

Why it matters

The stakes

The public would gain access to information about how courts operate and how judges and lawyers are disciplined. This could increase transparency in the judicial branch.

The vote

How the chamber split

Vote totals will appear when a roll-call is available.

The debate

What each side says

Supporters
  • The public has a right to know about court operations and disciplinary actions, which this bill would provide.bill
  • Making records machine-readable would make it easier for journalists and researchers to analyze court data.bill
Critics
  • Opening court records could compromise the privacy of jurors and the confidentiality of ongoing cases.bill
  • The bill might create additional administrative burdens and costs for the courts.bill

Each point links to its source. The views are attributed to those sources, not stated as ours.

Money lens

Sector money by vote

The money lens appears when a bill has a recorded vote and matching sector PAC data.

Contributions and votes are public records, shown side by side. Correlation is not causation, and this page does not assert one caused the other.